The night seems very dark when Jeyle glanced away from the fyre. The light went no farther then the nearest trees, everything beyond that was lost to the black. Jeyle shivered and moved closer to the fyre. It had seemed such an easy bet to win. All she had to do was spend one night, alone, in the middle of the Forgotten Wood. In return, she would get $3000 credits to the Mall Complex. She already had her eye on the amazing new Hover Pad that had been released last month. But that board, and the Mall, seemed very far away right now. She had lost sight of the City's walls shortly after entering the Wood, but had continued on until her UpSat told her she was in the geographical center of the forest. She wasn't going to have Misha claim she had lost the bet because she hadn't gone to the exact center of the Wood.
Jeyle had no idea why her light had gone out just after she had gotten settled under a tree to wait for morning. It was brand new, and the power cell was guaranteed for at least 25 Solar Cycles. She hadn't thought the device to be defective, but she decided she would take it back to the Mall tomorrow afternoon and have the android technician repair it or issue her a credit.
Only mere coincidence had resulted in the fyre she now huddled near. Lydra had been showing her some new incendiary tablets that she had purchased from a gag shop at the Mall when Misha first approached her about the dare. Jeyle had slid them into her pocket to give back to Lydra after Misha left, and had forgotten. The instructions were primitively simple. "Drop/Throw onto flammable surface". Even in the dark it had been easy to gather a small pile of dry leaves. The small fyre that resulted had provided enough light for her to gather some larger branches.
She ought to make Misha add some credits to the prize for....what was that old term?.....Pain and suffering! And she was suffering! Her UpSat was also down, so she had no games to play, HoloCasts to watch, or CiFS to listen to. With 11 Houras left till dawn, she was going to have to suffer through a long and boring night.
Staring into the fyre, Jeyle silently berated Misha for proposing such a stupid dare. He knew she would accept, especially with such a large Mall credit at stake. With a sigh, Jeyle lay down on the hard ground, shifting around until the worst of the rocks were out from under tender spots. How primitive she felt! To think that people had once done this sort of thing willingly back on Earth. "Camping" they called it. A damn imposition she called it. But she wouldn't go back. Not and see the look of superiority on Misha's face.
Staring up at the branches above her, Jeyle listened to the merry crackle and hiss of the fyre. A rather soothing sound once a body got used to it. And the light dancing across the branches made rather pretty patterns.
Closing her eyes, Jeyle began to drift off. It really wasn't cold, and all her earlier dread and trepidation had worn her out. With her eyes closed she didn't notice the flames getting higher and broader. She didn't notice the shaped flickering through the fyre. She noticed the increase in warmth, but was drifting so close to sleep that she thought it was just a dream.
Stepping out of the fyre, Calor looked around him. It had been many ages of humans since there had been a fyre in the Wood. They had become fearful and suspicious of the Wood in his GrandFlames time. Although many human generations had passed since then, all the humans lived in the City now, and the few who did come to the Wood did not stay long enough to need fyre. Calor stretched his arms out and felt the heat spread through his body. It felt good to exist in this place.
Finished with his survey of the Wood, he turned to the human lying near. He moved closer, illuminating her as he came near. He spent a long moment studying her, as he had never actually seen a human before, only heard stories of them from his GrandFlame. She looked so pale. She was not made of fyre as he was and seemed to him barely a shadow in comparison with his own glowing form.
Kneeling near her, he reached toward her face, getting a good long look as his hand illuminated her face in the full, warm glow of his fyre. She was not ugly to him, but he did not know how the Humes judged beauty. She had high, defined cheekbones and slanted, almond shaped eyes crowned with delicately arched eyebrows. He nose was straight with the slightest upsweep near the tip. Full, lush lips were pursed slightly in sleep and the stubborn set to her chin indicated she had a strong spirit. Her hair was as dark as the space between the stars and her skin, while pale from living inside, was creamy instead of sallow.
Pulling back slightly, Calor took in the rest of her. She was very tall, only a few inches below his own 6'5. She was clad a strange single piece jumpsuit of a non-descript dark green. Even though the outfit appeared to be unisex, it was very obvious she was a female. Full breasts were visible, but not overtly emphasized. Her hips were wide to accommodate her tall stature, and her longs legs seemed to go on forever. The fact that she was covered from neck to feet with only her hands visible only heightened her beauty. It made her seem exotic and mysterious to him, and he liked it.
Moving closer to her face again, he leaned in to get a better look. Resting one hand on the ground next to her head, he leaned in to study her closely. If this was to be the only time he same a Hume, he wanted to remember every detail. As he moved in, she surprised him by rolling over. Her hand and arm brushed up against his and he threw himself back.
Looking down at her in horror, he quickly examined her body for signs of bubbling, melting flesh. To his absolute astonishment, her skin was smooth and whole, unblemished by the contact with him. He reached out one trembling finger and lightly brushed her arm, prepared to pull away if she was damaged or showed any sign of pain. Nothing. His fyre did not hurt her.
He stared at her in awe, amazed at the form lying before him. He remembered a story his GrandFlame had told him once when he was very small, about Humes that were not harmed by the fyre of his people. His GrandFlame had never seen one, and didn't know anyone who had. He had only heard the story as a legend, passed on through ages unknown. Now that legend lay before him.
Pulling back, he stared at the fyre burning on the forest floor. Through that doorway he could see back into his home. He could even make out the edge of his chair where he had been sitting when the portal appeared. If he had any sense, he would go back through that door and forget everything that had happened to him tonight in the Wood. Yes, that's what he would do. Go his way and let the Hume go hers. Stepping toward the fyre, he couldn't help glancing back one more time at the still sleeping Hume. He was alarmed to see her shaking violently, like a leaf before the storm. Moving closer, he could see her teeth were clenched and her skin covered in small bumps. A small cloud ghosted from between her lips with every breath. Concerned he moved closer still, his light shining on her face. Her shaking calmed immediately and the little bumps began to disappear from her skin.
Calor was very curious. Being made of fyre, he had no idea of what cold was, and would hardly be able to grasp the concept, even if it was explained to him. He had no way of knowing that the temperature had dropped very rapidly while he was examining the Hume. He felt nothing but the constant glow of his fyre. His proximity to her had warded her against the deepening chill, but as he moved away, she had cooled.
Experimenting, Calor took several steps away from her. The cloud of breath reappeared, as did the bumps and shaking. Calor was not the very brightest flame, but neither would anyone mistake him for an Ember either. It only took a moment for him to realize that whatever strange illness the Hume had, it was kept at bay when he was near. Not wanting the Hume to be ill, he resigned to stay with her until the illness passed.
Sitting down on the ground next to her, he watched Jeyle sleep. As the cold increased, she moved toward his warmth instinctively. Soon she was pressed against him and he stretched out on the ground to provide warmth to her whole body. Still she slept, exhausted by her earlier ordeal. Calor continued to watch her, marveling at the fact he could touch a Hume without harming her.
Jeyle began to awaken. She was deliciously warm and comfortable. She did not remember she was lying in the Wood, just naturally assumed that since she had been asleep, she was in her bed. When she sleepily opened one eye to see how much time was left before the alarm went off, she was very confused to see only a few feet, then nothing but darkness. It was never that dark in her room. Opening the other eye, she stared at the brown thing standing near the edge of the dark. After a few moments her sleepy brain realized it was a tree. Why was there a tree in her bedroom? She didn't have a sylvan theme; it was oceanic with fish and a naturally artificial coral reef. Suddenly she remembered Misha and the dare and the Wood.
Sitting upright, she glanced around. Trees, rocks, dirt, fyre, man made of fyre, more trees.....man made of fyre? With a yell Jeyle scrambled away from Calor, moving backwards until she came up hard against a tree. Staring at him with eyed grown wide with fear Jeyle began trying to explain him to her mind. It didn't work very well. Her brain insisted he couldn't exist, while her eyes frantically told her brain they didn't care WHAT he could and couldn't do, he was sitting right there staring at her!
Calor could see the Hume was frightened. It wasn't hard. Her eyes were wide with dilated pupils and she was breathing in short shallow gasps. He got slightly distracted at this point by the sight of her breast heaving under the jumpsuit. They rose and fell rapidly under the thin jumpsuit, the nipples almost painfully hard with the cold. He had the almost overwhelming urge to stroke them, but felt he should probably hold off on that at this point.
Jeyle could see that the fyre man was staring at her chest. For whatever reason this made her feel much better. If he was going to kill her or eat her, he probably wouldn't be checking her out. As her terror began to subside, she noticed the cold. Knowing she would begin to sustain damage if she remained in the cold in her thin jumpsuit, she tentatively moved closer to the fyre.
As she crept closer, Calor smiled gently. He didn't want her to be scared. He just wanted to figure out what her illness was, and then go home. He was inexplicitly aroused by being near her and wanted to go so he could take care of it. He could feel his cock beginning to swell and fill as she moved close.
Jeyle tentatively smiled back when she saw him grin. She had never heard of any creature that smiled, and then killed you, so she figured she should be safe. She felt drawn to this strange man of fyre, in a way she never had been with any of the guys she had gone with. Neither of them realized they were being drawn together by Magic older than both their civilizations. Neither of them knew they were destined to be lovers. Neither of them knew what the night had in store. It was probably better that way.
